1. Technical Field
This invention relates, generally, to golf clubs and, in particular, to a golf club head with an encapsulated insert.
2. Background Information
Recent trends in golf putter designs have emphasized, among other things, the nature of the striking surface of the club face. Just as a golfer's response to impact during a golf swing is highly individualized, and depends in part upon complex subjective and psychological factors, a golfer's preference for putter face material is also highly individualized. While many golfer's prefer a hard, highly-responsive solid metal surface and the attendant “hard” sound and feel, others prefer a “softer” feel, perceiving that a soft feel correlates to improved distance and accuracy.
Soft club face surfaces are typically manufactured from various non-metallic (generally polymeric) materials bonded to or incorporated into the striking surface of the club face. The elastic properties of these materials result in a much softer response during a golf swing; but, at the same time, they often produce a relatively dull sound and feel during impact, which can be undesirable to some golfers.
Known club head designs which attempt to combine the desirable aspects of both polymeric and metallic materials are unsatisfactory in a number of respects. For example, various prior art hybrid club heads include a polymeric insert secured behind a metal face-plate or inlay. Such systems can be costly to manufacture, in that additional steps must be performed in order to bond the metal face-plate to the club head and finish the resulting surfaces. Furthermore, the act of bonding the face-plate to the club (through, for example, epoxies and the like) adds another structural feature which can reduce the effectiveness of the face-plate. In addition, the use of very thin metallic face-plate materials (e.g., titanium) during club head assembly can be cumbersome and result in costly accidental breakage.